POLICY

LPP collaborated with Governor Moore’s office to design a pardon proclamation to facilitate the record clearance process. The pardon proclamation was the largest state pardon proclamation for cannabis possession of any state,  and the inclusion of paraphernalia makes Maryland the first state to take such action. 

Through the LPP-supported Expungement Reform Act, all pardoned cannabis offenses will be removed from public view by January 31, 2026. The Maryland Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services will also indicate pardoned convictions on background checks.

The first bill LPP sponsored alongside Assembly Member Mia Bonta (D).  Despite having a state-initiated record clearance and resentencing mechanism, our research indicated inconsistent expungements, dismissals, and sentence modifications. Our recommendations established the most comprehensive cannabis-centric state-initiated record clearance and resentencing law in the country, continuing to serve as the gold standard for broader retroactive relief efforts. 

As of April 2024, 216,157 cases have been dismissed, modified, recalled, or cleared. This represents 95% of the cases eligible for relief but not acted upon before the passage of AB 1706.

In 2023, we passed a resolution calling on the Governor to provide clemency for individuals with cannabis offenses. 

In 2024, we passed two bills. One bill created Hawai’i’s first-ever state-initiated record clearance law for cannabis charges, while the other bill created a task force that LPP will sit on. 

In 2025, the legislature further streamlined the process established in 2024, ensuring that all eligible records are identified and cleared. All of these bills passed despite the continued legislative stalemate over legalization.

In attempting to get a sentence modification bill for individuals still serving time or on supervision for now-legalized conduct, prosecutors revealed that there are over 4,000 cannabis-related cases still pending for since-legalized conduct. We worked alongside prosecutors and public defenders to ensure 1,562 individuals were able to have their charges dropped and criminal records cleared. 

New Mexico legalized adult-use cannabis and created a state-initiated record clearance mechanism in 2021. By 2023, the legislature intended to rollback some provisions of its state-initiated record clearance program. LPP’s intervention ensured that relief was preserved and helped secure additional funding from the legislature in 2024 to fund state-initiated record clearance.

Rhode Island legalized adult-use cannabis and created a state-initiated record clearance mechanism in 2022. Certain types of criminal records presented technical issues, and the bill's sponsors were worried that the language may be cut. In conversations with agencies, LPP was able to design, write, and help implement a solution that has allowed Rhode Island to expunge over 23,000 records

In 2022, LPP collaborated with elected officials to draft a sentence modification bill for individuals currently serving time or under supervision for now-legalized conduct. Although the bill was left behind in the Senate, it was reintroduced and passed by both chambers in 2025. Unfortunately, the bill was vetoed by Governor Youngkin.

LPP successfully recommended several amendments to the expungement and resentencing provisions of Minnesota’s adult-use legalization bill. Our technical assistance led the legislature to adopt clearer procedures for state-initiated record clearance, as well as the addition of transparency and reporting requirements for various aspects related to expungement and resentencing.